Scott plans to trim Bryant’s 35.4 minutes-per-game average to 32 by ensuring he sits out at the end of first and third quarters. But everything else remains in question. That includes whether Bryant will trim point-guard responsibilities and if he will play on the second night of back-to-backs, including Friday’s game in Dallas.

“Once he plays Thursday, we’ll see how he feels and ready for Friday,” Scott said of Bryant. “If I don’t think his intensity level is as high as it should be, I’ll sit him Friday. But if it’s up there where it should be, he’ll play Friday. I can’t sit here right now and say, ‘Kobe won’t play Friday or Kobe will play Friday.’ We’ll wait until Thursday to see how it goes.”

Welcome home?

The Chicago Bulls waived Carlos Boozer this summer through the amnesty provision, a prideful blow to a two-time NBA All-Star and Beijing Olympic gold medalist. Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau sat Boozer out at the end of games last season because of defensive deficiencies. Bulls fans often booed Boozer.

Yet, Boozer expressed warm feelings for the Windy City after playing four seasons there.

“I had a great time in Chicago and played with some great players,” Boozer said. “I’m looking forward to seeing some of my old friends and teammates. I loved the fans. They were great.”

The Lakers picked up Boozer through an amnesty bid for $3.2 million. His time here has also featured some disappointments. Although Boozer has averaged 13 points and 7.4 rebounds per game, Scott recently demoted him to the bench because of his defense. Boozer openly questioned the move.

In addition to averaging 14.3 points and 9.1 rebounds through eight games as a reserve, Boozer shows encouragement to his teammates both when he sits on the bench and on the court.

“I love it when we make good plays and we’re playing out there and playing together. It makes it fun,” Boozer said. “You should want to win and want your teammates to do well. I’ve been like that my whole life though. It’s no different for me.”

Mark Medina has been the Lakers beat writer for the Los Angeles Daily News since 2012. He also works as a Lakers insider for AM570 and is heard on national radio outlets, including The Dan Patrick Show, The Herd with Colin Cowherd, The Chris Mannix Show, Fox Sports Radio, CBS Sports Radio, Yahoo! Sports Radio and SB Nation Radio. Medina also appears frequently on Spectrum SportsNet and NBC4's "Going Roggin."

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